


Anchor

by for_the_love_of_wolves



Series: Whumptober 2020 [11]
Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Exhaustion, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Insomnia, Nightmares, Pining, Pre-Relationship, Sleep Deprivation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-23
Updated: 2020-10-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,075
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27167251
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/for_the_love_of_wolves/pseuds/for_the_love_of_wolves
Summary: Robbie can't sleep. He's too scared of the demons visiting him in his nightmares. Daisy helps.
Relationships: Robbie Reyes/Skye | Daisy Johnson
Series: Whumptober 2020 [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1949101
Comments: 4
Kudos: 22
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	Anchor

**Author's Note:**

  * For [soulofevil](https://archiveofourown.org/users/soulofevil/gifts).



> Written for Whumptober Day 23: Exhaustion / Sleep Deprivation

It’s past 2 am and Robbie can’t sleep.

He knows that’s only half the truth. He can’t sleep and he doesn’t want to.

Robbie fears what might be waiting for him when he closes his eyes. Fears what might be reaching for him, what might try to pull him down, down to the flames, to the screams, to the …

He shivers and gets out of bed, heading towards the bathroom. It’s no use laying there and staring up at the ceiling until the sun rises. He can as well take a shower now.

In the bathroom, Robbie splashes cold water into his face. When he looks up and into the mirror, he sees paper-white skin and dark circles under his eyes. 

He’s been here before. He has had more than one restless or even sleepless night in his life. But it has never been this bad. This time, Robbie’s stomach twists whenever he thinks about closing his eyes and seeing it all over again. He can’t.

In the end, Robbie ends up washing his car while the morning is still fresh and pale. A few birds are singing, but otherwise, it is almost completely silent. 

Until Daisy appears out of nowhere, like she uses to do. God knows what she’s been doing all night. Probably hacked some banks. Because Daisy is not done playing modern Robin Hood yet, although it became more difficult, with the determined Shield team on her heels. 

Daisy has her hands deeply shoved into the pockets of her hoodie and looks Robbie up and down, arching a brow. “You look like shit,” she says dryly. 

“Thanks,” Robbie murmurs, not looking up from his work. He wipes the heck almost aggressively. 

Daisy hums and pulls out something deliciously smelling from somewhere. “Breakfast?” she asks. 

Robbie’s stomach revolts at the mere thought of food. “No, thanks.” Daisy shrugs and bites into a sandwich. “Wow, you’re talkative today,” she mumbles and strolls off, heading towards her van. Robbie pretends he doesn’t notice she glances back at him over her shoulder. Pretends he doesn’t notice the hint of worry breaking the cool facade of her face. 

* * *

“Why aren’t you sleeping?”

Robbie briefly closes his eyes. Damn. Of course it was just a matter of time until the people close to him would notice. Until they would ask questions. 

“Robbie?” And Daisy is persistent. Even more than Gabe, who gave up eventually. 

Robbie shrugs. He tries to stand up and leave the room, to avoid the worried glances and pressuring words, but his traitorous legs tremble underneath him and the world sways around him. He sits back on the chair with a quiet groan and rubs at his burning eyes. It’s day three without sleep and he really starts to feel it. 

“Goddamn, Robbie. You look horrible,” Daisy tells him, standing in front of him, her arms crossed. “You look like a ghost. Gabe told me you were talking to yourself this morning … Seriously, why aren’t you sleeping?” 

Robbie grits his teeth. He starts to massage his temples because his head started to pound. 

Daisy sighs again. Suddenly, her hand is on his shoulder. A gentle yet persistent kind of pressure. Something he can focus and hold on to … 

“Look, you can tell me, Robbie. There have been times in my life when I avoided sleep too, you know. I didn’t want to sleep because I was scared the nuns aka demons would come for me, drag me back to the orphanage or one of the crappy foster families I’ve been in. If you are experiencing something familiar, you can tell me. I can listen.” 

She sounds so sincere. It makes Robbie wonder. Does she really care? It seems like it. But … he can’t burden her with his baggage, right? She has enough of her own already. Robbie chews on his lip. Yet … it would be nice to be able to talk about it. To get it off his soul. Just a little bit. 

“It’s the nightmares,” he finally says, avoiding Daisy’s eyes. “I’m scared of the nightmares. My last trip … It was hell. Literal hell. The Rider dragged me through the flames and I saw things … Monsters, you can’t even imagine. This all comes back when I close my eyes and lose control. It seems like it followed me here. I can’t shake it off. That’s why I didn’t want to sleep.” 

“Robbie … But you can’t do that forever,” Daisy says, her hand still on his shoulder. It’s nice. Warm. 

“I know,” Robbie sighs. 

Daisy is silent for a moment. Then, she says, “What if you weren’t alone? Would it help if someone is there, waking you up in case you’re having a nightmare? Because … I can do that.” 

Robbie looks up at her surprised. “You would do that? Really?” 

Daisy smiles. It makes her eyes warmer. Like honey. “Sure. What else are, uh, friends there for, huh?” She pats his shoulder a bit awkwardly and chuckles. 

Robbie takes a deep breath. He’s still not entirely sure … He doesn’t want to be a burden. But he’s so desperate for sleep … So exhausted. “Okay,” he says. 

* * *

Not much later, they are laying in bed and it’s kind of overwhelming to feel Daisy’s warmth beside him. They are not touching, but there is not so much space between them. Robbie focuses on her breaths while she is scrolling down her mobile. 

He soon realises he won’t be able to stay awake much longer. He’s still scared, but … 

“You will wake me up?” he asks, just to be sure. 

Daisy looks up from her phone and smiles. “Pinky promise. Now, go to sleep,” she says, playfully stern. 

Robbie smiles. He closes his eyes and slows his breath. His exhausted mind reaches for the promise of sleep greedily. He lets it. Daisy is there. She will wake him up if it gets too bad. She won’t let him drift back into the flames. He can count on her. 

It’s his last coherent thought. He falls asleep and when he wakes up, it’s getting dark outside. Daisy is sleeping too, her mouth slightly open and her hand laying loosely beside her face. She is breathing softly. Robbie looks at her for a long while, so in awe he doesn’t even realise he didn’t have a nightmare. He didn't get lost in the darkness. Because ... He has an anchor right there beside him. And … he doesn’t want to lose it. _Oh_. 


End file.
